Shipping drum



G. E. BLACK SHIPPING DRUM Dec. 5, 1933.

Filed June 11, 1930 E M m a Patented Dec. .5, 1933 1,937,806SHIPPINGDRUM George E. Black, Sewickley,'Pa., assignor to PittsburghSteel Drum Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of DelawareApplication June 11, 1930. Serial No. 460,501

7 Claims. (Cl. 220*86) This invention relates to shipping drums and moreparticularly to filling means therefor.

Metallic shipping drums are now commonly employed for shipping solid andsemi-solid substances such as tars, pitches, rosins and the like,

and infilling drums with such materials it is necessary that thematerials be heated to render them sufficiently fluid to permit them tobe poured into the drum. After material of the character referred to ispoured into a drum, it cools and during the cooling action materialshrinkage takes place. Accordingly it will be apparent that the top ofthe material will be spaced from the upper head of the drum and thelatter will lack the support afforded by material in a completely filleddrum and it further will be apparent that the drum will not be whollyfilled and that a portion of the cubic capacityof the drum will not beutilized.

The present invention relates particularly to filling means for adrumwhereby the latter may be used for the. shipment of materials of thecharacter referred to, and wherein the entire cubic capacity of the drummay be utilized.

A further object is to provide means of the character referred to whichpermits a drum to be completely filled with material of the characterreferred to whereby the material itselfacts as suporting means for theupper head of the drum during shipment. v

.A further object is to provide means of the character described in theform of a simple readily attachable and detachable device which,

may be transferred'from one drum to another to permit the drums to befilled.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentduring the course of the following description.

Inthe drawing I have shown one embodiment of the invention. In thisshowing,

Figure 1 is a central vertical sectional view through the upper end of ashipping drum show' ing the invention applied,

Figure 2 is a similar view showing the drum closed andready forshipment, and,

Figure 3 is a detail perspective view of the filling attachment.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the numeral 10 designates the body of adrum which is connected at its upper end to a head 11 by means of asuitable seam 12. The drum, of course, is pro- .vided with a solidbottomhead (not shown).

The head 11 is provided with a central opening defined by a dependingcylindrical flange 13, and when the drum is filled and ready forshipment,

theopening is adapted to be closed by a suitable cover 14 including acylindrical sidewall 15 adapted to frictionally engage within the flange13. The cover is further provided with an upper horizontal flange 16which seats 50 against the upper face of the drum head.

The device forming the subject matter of the presentinvention comprisesa preferably frustoconical member 17 which is open at both ends asclearlyshown in Figure l. of the member 1'? is adapted to be arrangedwithin the flange 13 and substantially fits the filling opening definedthereby. The lower edge of the filling member 1'7 is preferably arrangedin the same plane as the lower edge of the fiange 13.

Any suitable means may be employed for supporting the filling memberinthe position just described. In the drawing, the member 17 isillustrated as being provided with a supporting member18 riveted orotherwise secured to the member 17 as at 19, and the supporting membersis provided with an outstanding horizontal flange 20 adapted to seatupon the upper baseof the head 11.

The operation of the device is asfollows:

The cubic capacity of the filling member 17 is preferably determinedaccording to the normal shrinkage of the particular materialwith which adrum is to be filled. Assuming that a drum is to be employed for theshipment of pitch, the

filling device is placed in the position shown in Figure 1, whereuponthe pitch is heated to the proper degree of fluidity and poured into theupper end of the filling device. operation is continued until the drumand the filling device are completely filled, as shown in Figure 1. r

The drum is permitted to set with the filling device in position in thefilling opening until the material has cooled and contracted. Aspreviously stated a filling device or" the proper capacity is employedaccording to the normal shrinkage of the material. Accordingly the material will shrink downwardly within the filling 7 device until thesurface of the material is at the level of the lower edge of the flange13. The cover 14 thereupon may be placed in position to close the drum,and the latter is ready for shipment.

It has been found that when a filling device is employed which increasesin size toward its lower end, as for example, when the filling device isfrusto-conical, the material, as it cools,

will shrink downwardly into the drum without i The larger end 35 Thepouring 90 adhering to the sides of the filling device, and after theshrinkage is completed, the filling device may be removed for use inconnection with another drum.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present inventionprovides novel means for filling a shipping drum in such a manner thatthe entire cubic capacity of the drum may be utilized without wastingspace within the drum as is true when the drum is filled according tothe usual methods. It further will be apparent that since the drum iscompletely filled with material, the latter acts as supporting means forthe upper head, thus tending to strengthen the drum and lengthen itslife.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and thatvarious changes in the shape, size and .arrangement of parts may beresorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or thescope of the subjoined claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with a container having a relatively large opening inthe top thereof, of a measuring filling device tapered throughout itslength to decrease in size toward its upper end and having its lower endcorresponding in size to and adapted to fit within said opening with thesmaller end thereof projecting a substantial distance above the top ofthe container, the capacity of said filling device being substantiallyequal to the shrinkage upon cooling of a quantity of a given materialwhich at a predetermined elevated temperature is sufficient to fill thecontainer and said filling device.

2. The combination with a container having a relatively large opening inthe top thereof, of a frusto-conical measuring filling device open atboth ends and adapted to be arranged in vertical position over thecontainer, the larger end of said filling device corresponding in shapeto and adapted to fit within the opening in the container, the capacityof said filling device being substantially equal to the shrinkage uponcooling of a quantity of a given material which at a predeterminedelevated temperature is sufficient to fill the container and saidfilling device.

3. The combination with a container having a relatively large opening inthe top thereof, of a measuring filling device having its lower endsubstantially fitting and adapted to be arranged in said opening and itsupper end projecting a substantial distance thereabove, said devicebeing frusto-conical in shape and decreasing in diameter toward itsupper end, and means carried by said device and adapted to rest upon thetop of said container for supporting said device with the lower endthereof arranged in said opening, the capacity of said filling devicebeing substantially equal to the shrinkage upon cooling of a quantity ofa given material which at a predetermined elevated temperature issufficient to fill the container and said filling device".

4. The combination with a container having a relatively large opening inthe top thereof, of a measuring filling device adapted to be arranged inoperative position with its lower end in said opening and its upper endprojecting a substantial distance thereabove, said device beingfrusto-conical in shape and decreasing in diameter toward its upper end,and a flange carried by said device and adapted to rest upon the top ofthe container to support the device in operative position, the capacityof said filling device being substantially equal to the shrinkage uponcooling of a quantity of a given material which at a predeterminedelevated temperature is sufficient to fill the container and saidfilling device.

5. The combination with a container having a relatively large opening inthe top thereof, of a measuring filling device tapered throughout itslength to decrease in size toward one end and having its opposite endcorresponding in size to and adapted to assume an operative positionwithin said opening with the smaller end of said device projecting asubstantial distance above the top of the container, and a flangecarried by said device and spaced slightly from the larger end thereof,said flange being adapted to rest upon the top of the container tosupport said device in operative position, the capacity of said fillingdevice being substantially equal to the shrinkage upon cooling of aquantity of a given material which at a predetermined elevatedtemperature is sufficient to fill the container and said filling device.

6. A measuring device of the character de scribed comprising a body openat both ends and decreasing in size toward one end, said device beingadapted to be arranged over a container having an opening in the topthereof with the 115 larger end of said body substantially fitting andarranged in said opening, the capacity of said filling device beingsubstantially equal to the shrinkage upon cooling of a quantity of agiven material which at a predetermined elevated 1% temperature issufficient to fill the container and said filling device.

7. A measuring device of the character described comprising afrusto-conical body, an annular flange carried by said body and pro- 1 5jecting outwardly therefrom adjacent the larger end thereof, said bodybeing adapted to assume a vertical-position with the larger end thereofarranged in a filling opening formed in the top of a container with saidflange resting on the 30 top of said container, the capacity of saidfilling device being substantially equal to the shrink-- age uponcooling of a quantity of a given material which at a predeterminedelevated temperature is sufficient to fill the container and said 13filling device.

GEORGE E. BLACK.

